(Crossville, TN) The U.S. Chess Federation (USCF) held the 2007 National Youth Action (NYA) tournament on November 16-18 at the Millennium Hotel in St. Louis, Missouri. The event drew 476 young chess enthusiasts!

The main event consisted of nine rounds of “Action” chess—it is an “Action” event because the time limit is only 30 minutes per player, limiting the whole game to one hour. There were four sections: Primary (K-3), Elementary (K-6), Junior High (K-9) and High School (K-12).

In addition to individual prizes, there was a team competition in each section that also awarded national titles.

Two side events were also held:

The 2007 NYA Blitz Chess Championship held on Friday, November 17. Stanley Yang won the K-12 Blitz with 10.5 points and Sean Vibbert won the K-6 Blitz with 11.0 points. (Blitz chess is played with a time control of five minutes per player per game.)

The 2007 NYA Bughouse Championship took place Saturday, November 18. The team of Kevin Bu and Matthew Dahl took the title with 10.0 points. (Bughouse is a version of team chess where two-player teams face each other. The time control is also only five minutes per game!)

The United States Chess Federation (USCF), founded in 1939, serves as the governing body for chess in the United States and is now headquartered in Crossville, Tennessee. USCF is devoted to extending the role of chess in American society. It promotes the study and knowledge of the game of chess, for its own sake as an art and enjoyment, and as a means for the improvement of society. The USCF is a not-for-profit membership organization with over 80,000 members. For additional information on the USCF see: http://www.uschess.org